Golf Glance: New formats for PGA Tour, LIV Golf finales

PGA TOUR
LAST TOURNAMENT: BMW Championship (Scottie Scheffler)
THIS WEEK: Tour Championship, Atlanta, Aug. 21-24
Course: East Lake Golf Club (Par 70, 7,440 Yards)
Purse: $40M (Winner: $10M)
Defending Champion: Scheffler
FedEx Cup leader: Scheffler
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Thursday-Friday: 1-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday: 1-2:30 p.m. (GC); 2:30-7 p.m. (NBC, Peacock); Sunday: Noon-1:30 p.m. (GC); 1:30-6 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)
Streaming (ESPN+): Thursday: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. ET; Friday: 11:15 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday: Noon-7 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
X: @TOURChamp
NOTES: Only the top 30 in the standings after the BMW Championship qualified for the Tour Championship. The Starting Strokes format has been eliminated, with this year’s field all beginning at even par for the 72-hole stroke play event. The outright winner will be the FedEx Cup champion. … The $40 million purse will count toward career money earnings for the first time since 2018. … Rory McIlroy is attempting to become the first player to win four FedEx Cup titles. … There are seven players making their Tour Championship debuts: J.J. Spaun (No. 3), Ben Griffin (No. 6), Maverick McNealy (No. 10), Andrew Novak (No. 15), Harry Hall (No. 26), Jacob Bridgeman (No. 27) and Chris Gotterup (No. 29). … Eight players reached the Tour Championship despite not winning a tournament yet this season: Tommy Fleetwood (No. 5), McNealy, Corey Conners (No. 19), Shane Lowry (No. 24), Hall, Bridgeman, Sungjae Im (No. 28), Akshay Bhatia (No. 30) … None of the 35 rookies on tour advanced to the season-ending event, with only Aldrich Potgieter qualifying for the playoffs. … East Lake played to a par 71 last season, with the 14th hole returning to a par 4 this year after playing as a par 5 in 2024. … Tiger Woods holds the tournament scoring record of 257 set in 2007.
BEST BETS: Scheffler (+150 at DraftKings) is trying to become the first back-to-back FedEx Cup champion. He’s the No. 1 seed for the fourth consecutive year and is already the first player with consecutive seasons with at least five wins since Woods (2005-07). … McIlroy (+800) holds the longest active streak as he makes his eighth consecutive Tour Championship appearance. He has nine top-10 finishes in 11 starts at East Lake. … Fleetwood (+1400) and Aberg (+1600) joined Scheffler as the only players to finish in the top 10 in each of the first two legs of the playoffs. … Spaun (+2500) is a career-high sixth in the world rankings following a runner-up and a T23 in the first two legs of the playoffs. … Viktor Hovland (+2800) is a former FedEx Cup champion who is coming off a T7 last week. … Sepp Straka (+3000) returns after missing last week’s event to attend to a personal matter. The big Austrian has a pair of wins this year and finished seventh at last month’s Scottish Open.
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Procore Championship, Napa, Calif., Sept. 11-14
LPGA TOUR
LAST TOURNAMENT: Portland Classic (Akie Iwai)
THIS WEEK: CPKC Women’s Open, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, Aug. 21-24
Course: Mississauga G&CC (Par 71, 6,661 Yards)
Purse: $2.75M (Winner: $390,000)
Defending Champion: Lauren Coughlin
Race to the CME Globe leader: Jeeno Thitikul
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Thursday-Friday: 9 a.m.-Noon ET (Golf Channel); Saturday: 4:30-7 p.m. (GC); Sunday: 4-6 p.m. (CBS)
Streaming: Saturday: 4-4:30 p.m. ET (NBC Sports App); Sunday: 3-4 p.m. (NBC Sports App)
X: @cpkcwomensopen
NOTES: The 156-player field includes six of the top 10 in the Rolex’s Women’s World Golf Rankings. … Mississauga will play host to the event for the first time as the tournament returns to Ontario for the first time since 2022. Mississauga hosted the RBC Canadian Open six times between 1931 and 1974. … Reigning U.S. Open champion Maja Stark and three-time LPGA Tour winner Haeran Ryu are among several players who competed at Mississauga in the 2016 World Junior Girls Championship.
NEXT TOURNAMENT: FM Championship, Norton, Mass., Aug. 28-31
LIV GOLF LEAGUE
LAST TOURNAMENT: LIV Golf Indianapolis (Individual: Sebastian Munoz; Team: Torque GC)
THIS WEEK: Team Championship, Saint John’s, Michigan, Aug. 22-24
Course: The Cardinal at Saint John’s (Par 70, 6,980 Yards)
Purse: $5M (Winner: $3M, 2nd: $1.5M, 3rd: $500,000)
Defending Champions: Ripper GC
Season Leaders: Individual: Jon Rahm; Team: Legion XIII
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV/Streaming: Friday: 12:05 p.m. ET (FOX, LIV Golf Plus); Saturday: 10:05 a.m. ET (FOX, LIV Golf Plus); Sunday: 1:05 p.m. ET (FOX, LIV Golf Plus)
X: @livgolf_league
NOTES: Friday’s quarterfinals and Saturday’s semifinals will be match play, with Sunday’s finals being a stroke-play competition. All 48 players across the 12 teams will compete in each of the three rounds, with no byes for the higher-seeded teams this year. … Rahm’s Legion XIII enters as the No. 1 seed after winning four tournaments this season. No. 12 Majesticks GC and No. 13 Iron Heads GC will face off in a single-elimination match play round at 8 a.m. on Wednesday to determine the final team in the field. … Rahm passed Joaquin Niemann to claim the individual title in Indianapolis. … This is LIV Golf’s first event in Michigan, and the league’s 50th event overall since debuting in London in June 2022.
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
LAST TOURNAMENT: Rogers Charity Classic (Richard Green)
THIS WEEK: The Ally Challenge, Grand Blanc, Mich., Aug. 22-24
Course: Warwick Hills G&CC (Par 70, 7,093 Yards)
Purse: $2.2M (Winner: $330,000)
Defending Champion: Stewart Cink
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Miguel Angel Jimenez
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Friday: 4-6 p.m. (NBC Sports App); 7-9 p.m. ET (Golf Channel — Tape Delay); Saturday: 2:30-4:30 (GC); Sunday: 1:30-4:30 (GC)
X: @ChampionsTour
NOTES: The 78-player field will compete in a 54-hole tournament. … Cink is No. 2 in the Charles Schwab Cup standings and is joined in the field by No. 3 Steven Alker along with notable names including John Daly, David Duval and Darren Clarke. … Cink set the tournament scoring record of 17-under 199 last year.
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Stifel Charity Classic, St. Louis, Sept. 5-7